


A Good Example

by tuppenny



Series: Growing Together [15]
Category: Newsies!: the Musical - Fierstein/Menken
Genre: Babysitting, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-18
Updated: 2018-04-18
Packaged: 2019-04-24 10:38:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,186
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14353767
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tuppenny/pseuds/tuppenny
Summary: Davey and his wife babysit the Kelly kids so that Jack and Katherine can have a date night.





	A Good Example

**Author's Note:**

  * For [gracedameron](https://archiveofourown.org/users/gracedameron/gifts).



> A prompt from Grace: Jack and Kath being exhausted parents and making someone else babysit for them so they can have a date night (I want both the babysitters and the date night)
> 
> Ellie is nearly 3, Nicky is 4 months. 
> 
> Davey & Chaya have been married nearly a year and a half.

**January 1912**  

“… Nicky’s a way easier infant than Ellie was, but geez, Dave, I’m tellin’ ya, I slept better on the lodgin’ house fire escape in the middle of winter than I do right now at home.”

“That bad, huh?”

“That bad,” Jack confirmed, signaling to the waiter for another cup of coffee. “If it ain’t Ellie kickin’ my shins in the middle of the night an’ wakin’ me up, it’s Nicky cryin’ f’r a feed…” Jack picked at his bagel and shook his head. “Kath gets ta him pretty quick, Lord love her, so she’s takin’ the brunt of it, f’r sure, but man… The two of us could use a week’s worth of naps. Or a month. Or f’rever.” Jack nodded his thanks to the waiter for the extra coffee and sighed. “An’ Ellie’s been havin’ nightmares lately, too… I try ta take mosta those, seein’ as how Kath’s already gotta be up half the night with Bug, but sometimes she don’t let me, she only wants Kath…” Jack scrubbed at his face. “I know ya ain’t gonna listen ta me, kid, but trust me; when you an’ Chaya have monsters of ya own someday, space ‘em out better than we done. Or at least grow an’ extra set of hands.”

“Actually,” Davey said, clearing his throat. “Chaya and I are, uh, thinking about… about, uh… about trying for kids?”

“What, ain’t ya sure?” Jack teased, knowing Davey hated discussing these things.

Davey flushed. “We _are_ thinking about it. We are. We’re just not… not sure yet, and…” He coughed, fiddled with his tie, and persevered. “Well, we were thinking maybe we could watch your kids for a day? Kind of… kind of like a… um… well, just a way for us to see a little bit better what it’s like? And you and Kath could have the day off?” 

Jack raised an eyebrow. “You wanna use my kids as a trainin’ ground f’r your parentin’ skills? Take ‘em f’r a test drive an’ hand ‘em back after ya bump ‘em inta the curb a few times, scrape off the paint?”

Davey paled. “I… I didn’t… Jack, I…”

Jack laughed. “I was just foolin’ with ya, Dave, don’t worry. I’d love it if ya looked after the kids f’r a bit; just gotta check with Ace first. Pretty sure she’ll be fine with it, though,” he mused, trying to decide if he needed a third cup of coffee before returning to work. “She’s had even less sleep than I have, after all. But are ya sure ya want to? I love my kids more’n anythin’ in the world, an’ I wouldn’t change a thing about ‘em, but they ain’t angels. Not by a long shot.”

Now it was Davey’s turn to laugh. “They’re half you, Jack; of _course_ they’re not angels.” Jack shoved Davey, who nearly fell off his stool at the lunch counter. “Hey! All I meant was that they’re children. Well, one child and one infant. They simply want what they want when they want it, and they don’t have the impulse control to be polite about it.” 

Jack grinned. “Yeah. Hit the nail on the head there. Sure ya wanna get yourself inta a mess like that?”

“Definitely,” Davey said, resituating himself on the wooden stool. “And it’s not like I haven’t watched Eleanor before, you know? Plus Chaya and I help Sarah and Avram out with their little ones sometimes, too.”

“Yeah, don’t call Ellie a little one,” Jack said absently, sipping his coffee. “She gets real fussy ‘bout that. Insists she’s practically a grown-up.” 

Davey snorted. “Kid’s about as tall as a grasshopper.”

“True, but don’t say _that_ in fronta Kath’rine,” Jack said. “She’s real sensitive ‘bout how short Ellie is.”

“Why?” Davey said, knitting his eyebrows together. “Children grow how they grow.” 

“Yeah,” Jack said, gesturing with his hand, “But she thinks she stunted the kid by usin’ formula, an’ ain’t she a horrible mother, an’ she shoulda tried harder, an’ how could she do that to her baby, an’ blah blah blah. Ain’t no talkin’ her outta that nonsense, neither; I’s tried.” Jack rubbed the back of his neck and propped his head on one of his hands. 

“You really _are_ tired,” Davey commented. “You never throw Kath under the bus like that.” 

Jack closed his eyes and rested his forehead on the counter. “So tired. _So_ tired.” He turned his head to meet Davey’s eyes and said, “F’r the love of heaven, David, please watch my children.”

 

*

 

“The bandages and iodine are in the bathroom cupboard,” Katherine said, bouncing Nicholas gently on her hip. “Ellie might ask for tea, and that’s fine, but don’t let her have anything to drink for an hour before bedtime, or she’ll wet the bed. Nicky calms down best if you hold one of his hands while singing to him. Don’t wrap him in the wool blanket; it’s itchy, and he’ll fuss.” 

“Okay, love,” Jack said, placing a hand on her shoulder. “They’ve got this. Hand Nicky over now, alright?”

“Do _not_ misplace Ellie’s cat book. She can’t sleep without it,” Katherine continued, oblivious to Jack’s attempts to get her out the door. “She wanders around the apartment with it, and sometimes she leaves it in odd places when she gets excited and sets it down, so you’ll have to keep an eye on her, and—” 

“You already said that, love,” Jack interrupted, leaning in to kiss her cheek. “They know everything they need to. They’ll be fine. Let’s go.” 

Katherine looked up at Jack, her uncertainty writ clear. “Nicky’s so young, are you sure we should—”

“Yes,” Jack said firmly. “We can’t be good parents if we ain’t slept in ages. We need a night to ourselves. They’ll be fine.”

“And you’re only a phone call away if anything does happen,” Davey added, giving Katherine a reassuring smile. “There’s no need to worry, Katherine. We’re not outnumbered; we’ll take good care of them.” He reached his arms out for Nicholas. Katherine clutched her baby even more tightly. 

“He’s not used to bottle-feeding at night, so he might not want to at first,” she said, cradling the back of Nicholas’ head, “But he will be hungry, so just keep at it.”

“We will,” Davey said, his arms still extended.

“You four have fun,” Jack said, taking Nicholas from Katherine and handing him over to David. “Call if you need us,” he added, “But… don’t call.”

Davey laughed, settling Nicholas against his chest and patting the baby gently. 

“Don’t listen to him,” Katherine said seriously, reaching out to rub Nicky’s back. “Call for any reason at all. Anything. It doesn’t even have to be important.”

“Yes, it does,” Jack said sternly, pushing Katherine towards the door. “Important stuff only, or we’re never comin’ back.”

“Jack!” Katherine protested, swatting his hands away. “ _Anything_ ,” she repeated, locking eyes with Davey. 

“Promise,” Davey nodded. “Don’t worry.”

“Okay,” Katherine said, swallowing hard. Her eyes darted from Davey to Nicholas, and then she surged back to her baby, kissing his head and cheek and making him blink and frown as her hair fell into his face. “Ellie?” She called, lifting her head and letting Nicholas go. “Come say bye?”

Both Ellie and Chaya emerged from the nursery, where Eleanor had been showing Chaya every single object in the room and explaining all of it to her. “Bye, Mommy!” She squealed, running down the hall and wrapping her arms around Katherine’s legs. 

“Bye, Bunny,” Katherine said, trying not to cry as she bent down and picked Eleanor up to hug her close and give her a kiss. “You be good for Uncle Day and Aunt Night, okay?” 

“Mhmm,” Ellie said, nodding into Katherine’s shoulder.

“Remember, you’re the big sister,” Katherine said, stroking Ellie’s hair, which was rapidly darkening from strawberry blonde to match Katherine’s own deep auburn. “So—” 

“Be a good sample!” Eleanor sang, leaning back and patting Katherine’s cheek. “I gonna be a good sample, Mommy, don’t worry.” She smiled and gave Katherine a kiss on the lips. “Gonna be a good helpa an’ a good lis’na an’ a good sample f’r Bug. Pwomise.” She started to wriggle in Katherine’s arms, and Katherine set her down reluctantly.

“Bye now, Ellie-girl,” Jack said, crouching down and giving Eleanor a hug. “We’ll see you tomorrow. Have fun tonight!”

“I will,” Eleanor said. “You too! Go have fun, Mommy!” She said, sensing that Katherine needed the reassurance more than Jack did. “Go, go!” She broke away from Jack’s grip and began pushing Katherine towards the door. “Me an’ Aunt Night gonna go play, Mommy. Bye!” She grabbed Chaya’s hand and tugged her down the hallway, barely giving Chaya enough time to wave goodbye to Jack and Katherine before the two of them disappeared back into the nursery.

“I’d say that’s a pretty clear order, there, macushla,” Jack said, amused. “It don’t get much clearer than that.” 

Katherine absently zipped and unzipped her purse a few times, staring down the hallway after Eleanor.

“You heard the girl,” Davey said gently. “Go have fun, Katherine. We’ll be fine.”

Katherine tore her gaze away from the empty hall and met Davey’s eyes with an intensity that took him slightly aback. “The hotel’s phone number is on a notepad by the telephone. Call us if you need to,” she reiterated. “For any reason at all.”

“He will,” Jack said, taking her by the elbow and pushing her out the door, mouthing ‘ _don’t_ ’ at Davey as soon as Katherine’s back was turned. “Bye, Davey. Thanks again.”

 

*

 

“Eleanor, it’s nearly bedtime for Nicholas,” Chaya said, glancing at the clock. “Your mother said you like to read to him first?” 

“Mhmm,” Ellie said, preoccupied with carrying her dolls and stuffed animals from one side of the room to the other. Given that she was Jack Kelly’s oldest daughter, this meant that she was trying to move a mountain of soft toys given to her by various newsies, and it was taking her quite a while. Especially because she insisted on carrying only one toy at a time. And on doing it by herself. Both Chaya and Davey had offered to help, but Ellie had rebuffed them. She just wanted them to watch.

“Okay, then it’s time to read to Nicky,” said Davey, who was helping the baby sit up and watch Eleanor walk back and forth across the nursery.

“Not yet,” Ellie said, positioning her washcloth bear just so. 

“One more stuffed animal, and then it’s time to read to Nicky,” Davey said. 

“Two mow,” Ellie said, pausing halfway back to the original stuffed animal pile.

“One more,” Chaya said firmly. 

Ellie frowned. “Two mow.”

“No more,” said Chaya. 

“Noooo!” Ellie wailed. “One mow, one mow!”

“One more,” Chaya said. “Last one.”

Ellie pushed out her lower lip and dithered for a while over which stuffed animal to pick, casting glances over at Chaya and Davey to gauge whether they meant what they’d said. “Two mow?” She asked after a while, giving them a hopeful look. 

“One more,” Davey said, and Eleanor sighed and finally selected her final animal: A giraffe that was half as tall as she was. She dragged it across the room by its neck, pouting all the way, and then she heaved it into the new pile of animals with a grunt. “Okay, Eleanor,” Davey said, picking Nicholas up and placing him gently in Ellie’s bed. “Go get a book.”

“Oh!” Chaya said suddenly. “I nearly forgot—we brought a book for you, Eleanor, if you would like to read that one?”

“New book!” Ellie said, brightening immediately. “Yes, please.”

Davey shot Chaya a questioning look, knowing that Eleanor wouldn’t be familiar with this new book and so wouldn’t have it memorized to ‘read’ to Nicky.

“It has pictures, Dovid,” Chaya said, smiling. “She can describe them.” He nodded, and Chaya let Eleanor take her hand and drag her down the hallway to where she and Davey had set their bags when they’d arrived. Chaya bent to rummage through the leather satchel Davey kept his work things in and pulled out a sturdy board book, handing it to Ellie. “Here you are, zissele.”

“A book! Fank you, Aunt Night!” Ellie cradled the book to her chest and kissed Chaya on the cheek before running back into the nursery. “Uncle Day! Look! ‘S a book! I’m gonna wead my baby my new book!” 

“Nicky can’t wait.” Davey’s eyes twinkled as he held the book for Ellie, waiting for her to finish clambering into her bed. “He’s excited—look, he’s smiling, see?”

“Yeah!” Ellie said happily. “Nicky likes weading wif me.” She sat down next to her brother and propped the book up in her lap so they could both see. “Okay.” She flipped to the first page and pursed her lips, studying the words and the artwork for a few seconds before beginning. “Dis is a cat. Dis is a dog.” She pointed her chubby index finger at the appropriate drawings, then turned the page. Davey smiled. Chaya was right; not knowing the actual words wasn’t going to stop Ellie. “Dis animal is a fwog on a log.”

Davey blinked; had she intentionally rhymed that? 

“Fwogs like to hop. Fwogs like to s… sh… swim. Dis fwog is a boy, so he is a him.” Eleanor turned the page, and Nicholas gurgled, his eyes fixed on his big sister.

Davey’s eyes were fixed on Ellie, too, but for a different reason. “Chaya,” he hissed. Chaya stopped moving their overnight bags from the hallway into Jack and Katherine’s room and stepped into the nursery. “Chaya, is she—is she _reading_?”

Chaya cocked her head and listened as Eleanor moved on to the next page. “Dis fwog is gween, dis fwog is blue. Dis fwog… dis fwog is….” She frowned and looked up. “Uncle Day? What’s dis say?”

Davey shot a look at Chaya before standing and moving over to see what Eleanor was pointing at. “Sitting,” he said, slightly bewildered. 

“Fank you,” Ellie said, flipping the book back around for herself and Nicholas. “Dis fwog is sitting on top of my… my… What’s dat say?” 

“Shoe.”

“Shoe,” Eleanor repeated. “Dis fwog is sit… sitting on top of my shoe.” 

Davey’s eyes grew as round as saucers as he shifted to stand behind Eleanor and proceeded to watch her read—genuinely read, not fake-read—the entire picture book. 

“Deeeee end!” Ellie said triumphantly, slamming the book shut. “Night night, Bug!” She kissed her brother on the forehead and looked up at Davey and then over at Chaya, waiting for the adults to spring into action and take Nicky.

“She was reading,” Davey breathed, staring at Chaya. “Chayele, she… she was _reading_.”

Chaya grinned and stood to give Davey a peck on the cheek before turning to Eleanor. “Did you like the book, ketseleh?”

“Mhmm!” Ellie said, patting Nicky on the chest. “Time ta put Nicky ta bed, Aunt Night, okay?”

“Okay,” Chaya said, still smiling. “And time for you to start getting ready for bed, right?” 

“Yeh,” Ellie said, not thrilled about this turn of events but determined to fulfill her promise to her mother and set a good example for Nicholas. 

“Uncle Day will help you brush your teeth,” Chaya said, picking Nicholas up and carrying him into Jack and Kath’s room.

“Okay,” Eleanor sighed, crawling out of her bed and pouting her way to the bathroom.

“Uncle Day?” Chaya called, noticing that her husband still hadn’t moved.

“Hmm?” Said Davey, who was flipping through the picture book, shaking his head in disbelief. 

“Go help Ellie?”

“Oh,” Davey said, dropping the book back onto the bed. “Right. Yes. Of course.”

 

*

 

Jack opened the door to the hotel room and swung his arm back to usher Katherine in. “M’lady,” he said, grinning. Katherine had spent the entire taxi ride fidgeting and biting at her fingernails, too wound up about leaving the children to snuggle into Jack the way he wanted her to. Maybe now that they were here, though…?

She walked past him in a daze, running her teeth across her lower lip and making a beeline for the telephone.

Jack sighed. “Kath’rine!” He dropped their bags, letting the door swing shut of its own accord as he dashed across the room to make Katherine put down the receiver. “Stop it—we have the night off.”

“Parents don’t get time off, Jack,” she said, reaching for the phone. “What if something’s gone wrong? I forgot to tell them that Ellie likes to read to Nicky in her bed, I need to call and—” 

“ _Katherine_ ,” Jack said, pressing her hand to the desk. “They’re fine. Nicky’s fine, Ellie’s fine. Davey an’ Chaya are good with kids, they’ve spent a lot of time with our little ones, an’ if anything happens _they_ will call _us_. Okay?” 

“But—”

“Ellie’s a bossy li’l chatterbox; she’ll tell ‘em ev’rythin’ they need to know.” 

“But—” 

“We ain’t been gone more’n an hour!”

“But—”

“Shh,” Jack said, putting a finger to her lips and moving it only so that he could slide his mouth into place on top of hers. “Kiss me,” he murmured against her lips, his hands sliding up her sides.

Katherine turned her head and took a step back. “Jack, I… I miss them.” 

Jack sighed and dropped his hands from her waist, heading to unpack their things. “Call, then.”

She bit her lip and looked at Jack, then at the phone. As soon as Jack entered the bathroom to set out their toiletries, she broke and dialed the number for their apartment. “Davey! It’s Katherine. How is everything?” She ran a finger along the smooth wooden desktop and waited desperately for his reply. “Oh, good,” she said, feigning relief. “Could you…” She met Jack’s eyes, and he gave her a half smile. “Could you put Ellie on, please?” Katherine said, dropping her gaze as her voice cracked slightly. There was silence for a moment, and then Jack heard Katherine’s voice shift. “Hi, Bunny! It’s Mommy. How are you?” Jack pulled out his Sunday outfit and hung it up in the closet. “That sounds like fun, sweetheart! Are you having a nice time with Uncle Day and Aunt Night?” Katherine sank onto the bed, a wobbly smile on her face. “I’m glad, muffin. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay? Do you want to talk to Daddy? Okay, I’ll put him on. Mwah! Bye, sweetheart! I love you!” She held the phone out to Jack and buried her head in the pillows as soon as he took it from her hands, trying to muffle her sobs so that Eleanor couldn’t hear her on the other end. 

Once Jack had said his goodbyes to Eleanor, he laid down next to his wife and wrapped an arm across her back. “Ace, love—do you want to go home?”

Katherine shook her head into the pillows. “I miss you, too,” she cried. “I need time with just you, Jack, and now I have it, and here I am ruining it, and I can’t help it because I miss them so _much_ …” 

Jack had no idea what was going on, so he just hugged her tight and hoped that that would do the trick. And it seemed to, thank heavens. Or, well, it did eventually. After a while, Katherine’s tears slowed and she shifted onto her side, nestling herself against him, her head fitting perfectly under his chin. Jack pressed a kiss to her hair and smiled as he heard her breath even out and felt her body relax into sleep. This wasn’t how he’d imagined spending a child-free night in a hotel with his wife, but… he’d take it. Holding Katherine was enough for him.

 

*

 

Davey, Chaya, Ellie, and Nicky were all sitting at the breakfast table the next morning, everyone but Nicky happily eating the pancakes that Chaya had whipped up for them, when they heard a key in the lock. Ellie got so excited that she flung her fork across the room, narrowly missing Davey’s head, and dashed out of the kitchen yelling, “Mommy! Mommy! Mommy’s home!” 

“Muffin!” Katherine said, wrapping Eleanor up in a huge hug and spinning her daughter around. 

“Missed you, Mommy,” Ellie said, giving Katherine sloppy toddler kisses.

“I missed you, too, Bunny,” Katherine said, smoothing Eleanor’s hair back and kissing her on the forehead before setting her back on the ground.

“What ‘m I, chopped liver?” Jack said wryly, entering the apartment and setting their travel bags down.

“Daddy!” Eleanor shrieked, flying into her father’s arms. “Hiiiiii!”

“Hi there, Ellie-girl,” Jack said, rocking his daughter side to side and kissing her hair as Katherine disappeared into the kitchen to hold Nicky. “Did you have fun?” 

“I had a bad dweam,” Ellie said, her face falling.

“Oh, no, baby! I’m sorry,” Jack said, running his thumb down Eleanor’s cheek. 

“ ‘S okay,” Ellie said, reassuring Jack with repeated pats on the arm. “Uncle Day an’ Aunt Night made my bad dweam go ‘way! We had a sweepova, an’ I cuddled alllllllll night.” 

“Did you now?” Jack said, amused. “How was that, Uncle Dave? Get any sleep?”

David laughed from the kitchen. “About as much as you’d expect,” he said, sounding happy but bleary. “She’s a wiggleworm, that one.” 

“Wiggle wiggle!” Ellie cackled, running back into the kitchen and pulling herself up onto her booster seat so that she could finish her pancakes.

“Sorry about that,” Katherine said sheepishly, pulling a dish towel out of one of the kitchen drawers and using it to cover Nicholas as he nursed.

“There’s nothing to apologize for,” Chaya said, smiling. “She’s a delight.” 

Katherine smiled back and patted Nicholas’ freshly diapered bottom. “Thank you two so much for watching them.” She turned her head to Jack and gave him a tender look. “And thank you for making me go, dear heart,” she said. “That was the best night’s sleep I’ve had since… well, since before Nicky was born.” 

Jack grinned and sat down on the kitchen stepstool. “It was pretty amazing,” he agreed, before shooting a mischievous look at Davey and Chaya. “In fact, I could do it again t’night, if I’m bein’ honest. Up for another shift, kiddos?”

Davey snorted. “Not tonight, thanks. We need time to recover.”

Jack laughed and clapped a hand on Davey’s shoulder. “I don’t blame ya,” he said, shaking his head as he looked over at his nearly three-year-old, who was singing made-up songs to herself while shoving pieces of pancake in her mouth with her fingers. “Bet we set your child schedule back a few years, huh?” 

“Actually…” Davey raised his eyebrows and looked over at Chaya. 

“We loved every minute of it,” Chaya said, her voice quiet but firm. “We’re going to start a family as soon as possible.”

“Congratulations,” Katherine beamed. “It’s the hardest, most rewarding job there is.” 

Chaya smiled with her eyes and nodded, her gaze drifting over to a still-singing Eleanor, who was now making the pancake pieces gallop across the table before stuffing them into her mouth. 

“Well, what are you waiting for, then?” Jack said, shooing Davey out of his chair and sitting down in his place. “You said as soon as possible—get outta here, you two. You’ve got work to do.” 

Davey smacked Jack upside the head. “Eleanor’s right here, Jackie! You’re setting a bad example,” he teased. 

Eleanor looked up at the sound of her name, and her eyes widened. “No, no, Daddy! Gotta be a good sample, okay?” She said, her expression deadly serious. “Gotta be a good sample f’r my baby!”

“Okay, Bunny,” Jack said, reaching across the table to steal one of her pancake pieces. “I’m sorry. I’ll be a good example now, I promise.”

Eleanor nodded, satisfied, and returned to singing and eating.

“Seriously, though,” Jack said, mischief in his eyes. “You two have some long nights ahead of you. Better go rest up.”

“You’re awful,” Davey grumped, rolling his eyes. “Chaya, let’s scoot so that Jack can get back to corrupting his own family instead of ours.” 

Chaya and Katherine snorted, and Jack threw a piece of food at Davey in retaliation. Eleanor gasped and covered her mouth with her hands. “Daddy! No! Be a good sample!” 

Jack went to pick up the pancake, a guilty expression on his face. “Sorry, Bunny.”

Ellie shook her head and frowned. “Mommy, does Daddy need a time out?”

Katherine tried desperately not to laugh. “I think that’s a very good idea, muffin,” she said, her eyes twinkling. 

Jack sighed overdramatically and left the room, off to unpack their overnight bags and help Davey repack his. “Being a good example is hard,” he said, his voice echoing down the hallway. “Who knew.”

“Harder than leading a strike?” They heard Davey say. 

Katherine smiled at Chaya, knowing that Jack was probably shaking his head and brushing his nose as Davey clapped a hand to his shoulder.

“Heckuva lot harder,” Jack said.

“Daddy!” Ellie yelled. “No, no! Don’t say dat! ‘S a bad word! _Be a good sample!”_  

**Author's Note:**

> Zissele = Sweetie
> 
> Ketsele = Kitten


End file.
